Jud Bowman’s new startup, Sift, which is a spinoff of Digital Turbine Media, is launching with $4.2 million in investment capital. Bowman is an investor in the new firm as is Wakefield Group, a long-time investor of Bowman-led startups.
Wakefield previously had been disclosed as a $3.9 million investor in Sift.
Bowman also had bought stock worth at least $60,000.
Seventeen investors participated in the funding, each putting at least $20,000 into the round.
Digital received an ownership stake in the new venture, which Digital asked Bowman to run, according to Bowman. William Stone, CEO of Digital Turbine, is listed as a director.
“[W]hen Digital Turbine approached me about the potential opportunity for this spinout, I realized my entrepreneurial hunger was very much still there,” Bowman told WTW last week.
“I’m so lucky to get to do what I love in life,” he added, “and I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to launch my third startup, Sift.”
Wakefield’s Steve Nelson and Slawek Pruchnik, who worked with Bowman at Appia which is now part of Digital Turbine, also are listed as directors.
Bowman sold Appia to Digital Turbine Media last year. In launching Sift, Bowman is following a similar path in starting Appia with assets he acquired from Motricity as he left that former Durham firm.
Sift’s focus is proprietary ad bidding software.
Bowman stepped down from Appia but took a position at Digital when the acquisition took place. He did not participate in the Digital decision, according to the SEC filing about the Sift spin-off.
The intellectual property and assets being spun off to the new venture were part of Appia.
Sift paid Digital $1 million in cash and also awarded Digital 9.9 percent of its shares. Further, Digital was to receive a board seat at Sift.
Bowman owns 53 percent of the firm’s shares. He paid $60,000 for the shares, the filing said.
Additionally, according to the filing about the spinoff, he will receive a salary of $200,000 plus potential bonuses up to 50 percent of his base pay
